CASTRIES, St. Lucia, CMC—The performing Chief Justice of the Japanese Caribbean Supreme Courtroom (ECSC), Mario Michel, mentioned Friday that he hopes his retirement on Might 5 will pave the best way for the unanimous appointment of a brand new head of the courtroom.
Michel, a St. Lucian-born jurist, was appointed in Might 2024 to behave as chief justice, succeeding Dame Janice M: Pereira, who had held the place since October 24, 2012.
After two extensions, Michel’s appointment was slated to run out on January 19, 2026.
“Nonetheless, I made a decision to retire from my substantive workplace as a justice of enchantment and consequently as performing chief justice, as of Might 5, 2025, which is the anniversary of my appointment as performing chief justice,” he advised a particular sitting of the ECSC on Friday to mark his retirement.
“I’m hoping that my retirement will assist to clear the trail to a unanimous choice of the OECS (Organisation of Japanese Caribbean States) heads of presidency on a everlasting appointment to the workplace of chief justice,” Michel mentioned.
He thanked the St. Lucia-based Judicial and Authorized Providers Fee (JLSC) for appointing him to behave as chief justice and for “the full cooperation and assist that I’ve gotten from the members of the fee since my first appointment as performing Chief Justice and, ex officio, the chairman of the fee.”
Mario thanked the individuals who spoke at or attended the particular sitting, which noticed participation nearly from all courtroom member states.
“It’s been over 16 years: seven months as an performing Excessive Courtroom decide in Anguilla and Grenada, three years as a resident Excessive Courtroom decide in Antigua and Barbuda, and 12 years and eight months on the Courtroom of Enchantment, with the final of those years serving in an performing capability because the Chief Justice of the Japanese Caribbean Supreme Courtroom,” Michel mentioned.
“These 16-plus years represent the longest span of the three capacities during which I’ve labored since leaving regulation college in June of 1984, the opposite two being as a lawyer in personal follow on the bar in St. Lucia for practically 15 years and as a parliamentarian and authorities minister in St. Lucia for a little bit over 9 and a half years.”
Michel, a legislator and former deputy prime minister of St. Lucia, mentioned that in his service in all three branches of presidency, he has “all the time tried to be a tough employee, an sincere man and an individual of excessive integrity.
“If ever I fell quick even barely in any of those capacities, it may solely have been once I didn’t work as onerous as I may have at a specific process.
“Alongside the best way, I served within the legislative department of the Authorities of St. Lucia as a parliamentary consultant and chief of presidency enterprise within the Home of Meeting, within the government department as deputy prime minister, and within the judicial department as performing chief justice,” Michel mentioned.
“On the finish of those three segments of my journey, I harbor no regrets or disappointments, both for holding the places of work that I did or for not conserving these I might need. It was adequate for me to present all of it my greatest.
“So I thank everybody whom I labored with in my 41-year working life up to now, particularly on this event, the judges and the courtroom employees with whom I labored in my 16-plus years on the bench of the Japanese Caribbean Supreme Courtroom.”
Michel additionally thanked his household: “And not using a supportive household, work, and life usually could be rather more troublesome than obligatory.
“And I used to be fortunate to be blessed with a supportive household. So thanks to my spouse, my youngsters, my siblings, most of whom are right here, and posthumously, to my mom for the elements they every performed in my life’s journey.”
Michel ended his feedback with “a plea and a pledge” and voiced his need for the subsequent chief justice to proceed the courtroom’s public schooling program, which started in September.
Justice Michel mentioned he believed this system was starting to bear fruit in demystifying the Japanese Caribbean courtroom system and educating youth and college students in regards to the courtroom system normally and the ECSC as an establishment.
“We’ve finished just a few useful issues in these final seven months, together with the visits to the neighborhood schools in all of the 9 member states and territories of the Japanese Caribbean Supreme Courtroom, the general public lecture sequence, the youth leaders symposium, and the printed and posting of a wide-ranging interview of me by a media skilled in S.t Lucia,” the performing chief justice mentioned.
Nonetheless, he mentioned there may be nonetheless quite a bit to be finished, “which I hope our subsequent chief justice will facilitate and take part in.” He added that, thankfully, the courtroom has an info companies supervisor working with him to implement the general public schooling program.
“And the chief registrar and the courtroom administrator are on board with that program,” Justice Michel mentioned.
The bench and bar members have proven vital appreciation and assist for it. This could make it not too troublesome for a brand new chief justice to proceed with this system.
Michel pledged to help whoever succeeded him as chief justice: “If in any respect I may give some help to you on account of the years of expertise which I had on this workplace, please be happy to name me.
“And I imply free. This isn’t a bid for consultancy work. Thanks as soon as once more to everybody,” Justice Michel mentioned.
He was talking on the finish of a sitting during which his lifelong buddy, since childhood, King’s Counsel, Dexter Theodore, of St. Lucia, expressed remorse that Michel was not appointed chief justice.
“As a decide, his lordship’s legacy lies in his brave constancy to the regulation even when it unsettled highly effective politicians. Sadly, in these elements, fierce independence of thought by judicial officers regularly attracts parochial repercussions,” Theodore advised the courtroom.
“Sadly, it’s no secret that his lordship’s elevation to the substantive chief justice put up has been thwarted. Beneath the OECS Treaty, such appointments require unanimous consent from regional leaders, which has not been forthcoming,” he mentioned.
“If there are those that consider {that a} decide of the Japanese Caribbean Supreme Courtroom ought to rule based mostly on his political philosophy, moderately than out of regard for the regulation, they have to perceive that this can be a Trumpish notion which should be eschewed.”
The senior lawyer mentioned {that a} system that “offers a politician the flexibility to face in the best way of the appointment to judicial workplace of a deserving candidate for causes which can or could not have something to do with the judicial officer’s competence and integrity should be flawed.
“His lordship’s blocked ascension shouldn’t be a failure of Caribbean jurisprudence however a name to reform it. If we look at the standard of his lordship’s judgment, we are going to see that his judgments have helped form our authorized panorama,” Theodore mentioned and outlined a few of Justice Michel’s distinguishing judgments.
